2011 Mini worth it?

I have a 2007 iMac 20" that I was planning to replace later this year when haswell comes out with probably a 13" rMBP. I have the patience, but I want to be prudent with cost. I like the idea of the mobility of a laptop, but since I currently am "surviving" with an iMac, getting the mini doesn't concern me too much.

For these purposes, I want to compare the 2011 mini to a new mini.

I found a way to get a 2011 i5 2.5 Ghz with 4 GB ram and 500 GB hard drive for $400 new. I know I'm giving up the usb 3.0, but it still has thunderbolt. Is there a good reason to wait for Haswell other than the usb 3.0 (which I know is available now, too)? For $400, I might just pull the trigger and do the RAM and SSD upgrade myself.

My needs are basic. Web, Office (I am on excel quite a bit), the occasional handbrake of my DVD rips (which is excruciating on my iMac), and tinkering.

Thoughts?

I have a screen. Heck, I could probably still sell my iMac for as much on craigslist.

phoenixsan said:

one of the most touted features of Haswell is power comsuption/management. Other, not so touted is the advantages of new architecture in the chips. No more raw power per se. Or too faster chips, for this case. So, unless you really wants/needs the USB 3.0, you will do well with the 2011 mini, based in your description of uses, IMHO.

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Thanks for the advice!

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Fishrrman said:

Unless you're really pressed for cash, the 2012 i7 Mini might be worth the extra $$$.

The USB3 is a -BIG- improvement -- the single greatest improvement for 2012 in the entire Macintosh lineup.

Conversely, Thunderbolt is still the "most underwhelming" Mac technology of them all...

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That was what I was wrestling with. But I don't have a ton of media right now. If I added a ssd to the mix, the ssd and hdd would be enough to fit all my media. Then my only external drive would be time machine. I don't care too much if that takes longer to transfer. I do appreciate that I don't know what the future holds, and I could really regret not having USB 3.0 in a time not all that far away, but my needs as of now seem to be met with the 2011. I'll keep stewing. I appreciate your input.